A heavy burden has been placed upon medical workers due to the medical crisis. A scientific review on medical staff groups across different countries revealed that their safety was their utmost concern, especially because frontliners treat patients directly. The review cited that nurses in China were worried about their welfare, especially due to the unavailability of personal protective equipment for medical workers. In the early stages of the pandemic, their direct exposure to cases had the potential to lead to life-threatening infections due to the lack of medicines formulated specifically for the virus.

Aside from defending themselves against infection, the review emphasized that medical staff were also battling against fatigue and burnout. Despite the diverse roles and responsibilities of healthcare workers, the majority of medical professionals had to devote extra time to ensure hospital’s weren’t overwhelmed. And in line with the new health regulations and procedures, health administrators spent more time creating and implementing relevant hospital policies for sanitation and care. Medical technologists also worked overtime in laboratories to ensure a quick turnaround for the results of COVID-19 tests. The aforementioned review also mentioned that a nurse in Toronto had to work multiple 12-hour shifts in the emergency department with no breaks to cater to all admitted patients.

The Gaps Causing the Alarming Struggles of Medical Frontliners

Given that medical frontliners are overworked and at risk in their workplaces, a review on the mental health impact of the pandemic revealed that one out of every four healthcare workers was diagnosed with mild anxiety, depression, or insomnia. One study in the review highlighted that healthcare workers experienced anxiety and fear, especially since they felt inadequately prepared to handle the pandemic on a hospital-level.

Other studies have also emphasized the importance of training regarding COVID-19 infection and control, especially from authority figures within the workplace. The lack of training for the pandemic made frontline workers feel vulnerable to the infectious disease, causing them to experience even more mental distress.

Apart from training hospital workers on handling a pandemic, it is also important to ease the burden on medical frontliners by providing equal access to vaccines. One of our articles emphasized that prioritizing wealthy countries and placing value on profits in vaccine distribution is a form of injustice to everyone. Without a collective response, we’ve seen that the virus will only mutate and develop powerful variants that current vaccine options are unable to fully defend against. Due to the unequal distribution of vaccines, healthcare workers will have to risk their health and endure longer shifts every time infection rates surge.

Healthcare workers continue to struggle because of the unsystematic responses to the pandemic. While they were burdened by the lack of preparations for the first waves of the virus, they continue to be overworked and over-exposed because of the inequality in vaccine distributions. To properly honor the heroes of the pandemic, it’s important to explore how medical systems and care interventions can be improved.

The post Why Healthcare Workers Struggle Amidst the Ongoing Pandemic appeared first on Medika Life.

Indeed, published reports also talk about “pandemic fatigue” and the worry such fatigue is causing public health officials as virus cases surge once again in Europe. Here in the United States, the number of cases is also growing, and as the colder weather sets in, it is quite concerning that the pandemic will only get worse.

This is very concerning to me.

SARS CoV-2 is not taking a break. SARS CoV-2 is not suffering from “pandemic fatigue.” SARS CoV-2 is not letting up, and the more we become lax with public health measures, the more of a foothold the virus will gain in our communities.

It’s really not that hard.

Whenever we are in public, we need to wear a mask. We don’t need to wear a mask when we are in our cars alone; we don’t need to wear a mask if we are walking with family outside; we don’t need to wear a mask when we are at home. We just need to wear a mask when we are with other people in public. That’s it.

We need to maintain social distancing. The fact that we are yearning for social interaction between each other is encouraging, and it bodes well for our humanity. That said, if we want to crush the transmission curve, we need to keep our distance from each other.

We need to wash our hands and wash our hands a lot. Research has shown that SARS CoV-2 can last up to 9 hours on human skin. We should not go 9 hours without washing our hands, especially if we are out and about getting groceries or gas. As far as I am concerned, one cannot wash his or her hands enough times in the day.

SARS CoV-2 is not taking any breaks or time off. We need to remain vigilant.

We are not even close to being out of the woods with this pandemic. The flu pandemic of 1918 lasted for two years. Millions of people died. While I am hopeful we will not have the same scale of death and destruction, we still need to realize that the war against SARS CoV-2 is a long one, and we need to remain vigilant and not let down our guard.

Even if we get a vaccine — one that is safe and effective — soon, it will take a long time to distribute to enough people to make an impact. That’s assuming that enough people will even want to take the vaccine. That is also assuming that the vaccine will confer long-lasting immunity. Those are all unknown at this point, and thus we need to not let up the fight against this disease.

“Pandemic fatigue” is understandable. We all want to get back to the way life was before Covid-19. I get it, and I feel the same way. At the same time, we need to remember that this virus is deadly. It doesn’t just kill you. It tortures you for weeks on end and then takes your life when you are battered and alone. It is a horrific monster, and if we can avoid getting it, we should do so at all costs.

SARS CoV-2 is not taking any breaks. SARS CoV-2 is not taking any time off. It is relentless, and so too must be our resolve to fight against it. Our weapons are masks, soap and water, hand sanitizer, and social distancing. We cannot let down our guard; we cannot ease up. We cannot let “pandemic fatigue” get the best of us. It is truly a matter of life and death.

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